Christmas Spirit
by bandgeek18
Summary: Roy's feeling sad at Christmas time, so Oliver and Hal take him out for Christmas festivities to cheer him up. One-shot.


A/N: So happy I got this done! I'm going to try and work on another Christmas story to post before Christmas Day, but for now, here's this one! Enjoy!

Oliver's first clue that something was wrong came when Roy flopped down on the couch with a deep sigh. It was almost amusing and he would've laughed if not for the deeply sad look on the child's face. "What's wrong, kid?" he asked, lending over the back. "Rough day at school?"

"…Not really," Roy mumbled.

"What's wrong then?"

"It's just… It's Christmas, Ollie…"

"Uh…" Oliver was ashamed to admit he did have to check the date to be sure it was still December 5 and not Christmas Day. "It's the Christmas season, sure. What's so bad about that? Do you not like Christmas?"

"I love it! It's just… Brave Bow isn't here…"

"Ah…" There was a moment where Oliver felt guilty for not assuming that was what had the boy so upset. 'It hasn't even been a year and now it's his first Christmas without his dad here.' He stroked Roy's hair a little bit. It was a sign of how upset the boy was that he didn't pull away like normal. "I'm guessing the whole, missing Brave Bow thing has been worse the past few days?" When Roy nodded Oliver almost winced. "How about we get a jump on celebrating then, hm? What do you usually do to celebrate?"

"Well… I'd write a letter to Santa, and Brave Bow would bring me to the post office. They had a special stamp to put on it and then it would go in a special red and green mailbox so they could send it to the North Pole."

"…Uh-huh…"

"We'd get the tree out of the shed and make decorations for it."

"You made decorations?"

"Mhm. A paper chain, and little ornaments with popsicle sticks and glitter. We had some non-homemade ornaments in a box that wee like…a bajillion years old too. Then we'd decorate the tree."

"Huh. Well, we can do all that stuff too. In fact, why don't we go see Santa this weekend so you can tell him what you want for Christmas?"

Roy bolted up with a shocked look on his face. "You can see Santa?! For real?!"

"Of course. You've never…gone to the mall to sit on Santa's lap?"

"No. I just wrote him a letter."

"You can do that too if you want, but you can meet him in person."

"Yes, please!" Roy moved so he was kneeling on the cushion facing Oliver. "I want to meet Santa!"

"And maybe after we can find a Christmas tree farm in the mountains and chop down a tree."

"Like a real tree? Because Brave Bow always had a fake one, but I heard the real ones smell nice."

"They do smell nice. How about it then? This weekend we'll go see Santa and cut down our own Christmas tree? We can decorate it Sunday."

"Yes! That sounds awesome! Can Hal come too?"

"Absolutely." This would undoubtedly ruin any plans, Hal, probably had that weekend, but he hated seeing Roy upset almost as much as Oliver, so it didn't seem like it'd be too hard to convince him. "Does that sound like a plan?"

"Yes!"

"Ok. Now, go do your homework. You don't want to be on the naughty list."

"You're right!" Roy darted off the couch and out of the room like his life depended on it.

Oliver smiled as he watched the boy leave and shook his head. 'Good to see he's at least smiling again. I hate seeing him upset especially around Christmas.' Granted Oliver had never done the Christmas thing with a kid, but it didn't seem that hard. 'At least Hal will be there to help me. Even though he also doesn't know what he's doing. We can figure it out together.'

— —

The following morning, Hal sighed for the hundredth time as he crossed his arms. "I swear to God, I don't even think the line has moved," he told Oliver.

"Keep sighing and you'll be on the naughty list," Oliver warned him.

"Yeah, Hal," Roy piped up, leaning over the green, velvet rope as much as he could; neck craned toward the front of the line. "You don't want to be on the naughty list. You'll get coal."

"That's ok," Hal shrugged as he shoved his hands into the pockets of his flight jacket. "I'm a little old for toys anyways. Let me know when Santa starts delivering beer and new planes for me to test. Ow!" He gave Oliver a look. "If anyone's getting on the naughty list this year it's Ollie. He just elbowed me."

"Cool it, Harold," Oliver warned his friend under his breath. "There are children everywhere. And stop complaining, it's not like you're doing manual labor."

"Yet. Besides, you never told me this required getting up at the crack of dawn."

"It's well past dawn."

"Same thing."

"Just stop, please. It's the happiest Roy's been all week. Play along."

"Hey, Hal," Roy said, interrupting them. "If you're such a good pilot, can you fly Santa's sleigh?"

"Of course I could," Hal scoffed. "I could probably fly it better than the fat man himself."

Oliver rolled his eyes, but he didn't say anything because the response made Roy giggle. 'Whatever it takes I guess.' He spent the next twenty minutes keeping an eye on Roy in case the boy decided to duck under the velvet rope and out of the line, while also trying to ignore the five Christmas songs the mall was playing on a loop. "They do know there are like…a million Christmas carols?"

"Yes, but why wouldn't you play Santa Claus is Coming to Town?"

As they got closer to the front, Oliver noticed that Roy seemed to be getting more and more excited. Except when they were next in line. He stopped peering over the velvet ropes and hung back, basically pressing himself against Oliver's legs. 'That's weird,' Oliver thought as he put his hand on Roy's head. "What's up, kiddo?"

"Um…," Roy mumbled. "Are you sure it's ok to meet Santa?"

"Of course. All those kids before us have met Santa. Why wouldn't it be ok?"

"Well…what if he doesn't like me? Or he doesn't recognize me? We've never met before, he's only read my letters."

"Santa loves all kids. That's…why he spends all of Christmas Eve delivering toys. Right, Hal?"

"Absolutely," Hal agreed.

"Ok…" Roy replied uncertainly. He shifted from foot to foot until it was his turn.

When he was next in line, a blonde, teenaged girl dressed as an elf came over and smiled at him. "Hey there," she said. "What's your name?"

"Roy Harper."

"Nice to meet you, Roy, I'm one of Santa's helpers."

"Are you a real elf?"

The girl chuckled. "Unfortunately, no. Just an honorary one." She glanced behind her, then held out her hand. "Ready to meet Santa?"

"Uh-huh." Roy took the girl's hand, then let her lead him over to Santa Claus. The area around Santa's chair was decorated with fake snow and reindeer, and in the center of it was the man himself.

"Santa, you remember your friend Roy Harper, don't you?" the girl asked as a teenaged boy, also dressed as an elf, lifted Roy up and set him down gently on Santa's lap.

"Ho ho ho, I know Roy," Santa smiled. "Nice to see you, kiddo."

"You too, Santa," Roy said, his green eyes wide. He glanced to the side, where Oliver and Hal were standing. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course!"

"How come I never met you when I lived on the reservation? Why can I only come to see you when I live in Star?"

'Uh-oh,' Oliver thought, trying not to grimace.

"Well, Roy," Santa said gently, placing a hand against the boy's back. "There's 24 days before Christmas right? 23 if we don't include Christmas Eve."

"Mhm," Roy nodded.

"Unfortunately, that means Santa can only visit so many children before Christmas comes. And I have to visit children all over the world. But, I always read your letters and I'm always checking in on you with my magic snowball to make sure you've been good."

"I'm always good."

Hal and Oliver both snorted quietly, trying not to openly laugh.

"I know you are," Santa said. "In fact, as of right now, you're on the nice list."

"That's good," Roy smiled. "I don't want coal."

"And since you're on the nice list, what would you like for Christmas this year?"

"I want…the new Star Wars action figures. The ones that come with the lightsabers the light up. Oh, and a real lightsaber. And also, Legos." Roy pointed to Hal and Oliver in turn as he kept talking. "And Hal wants beer and a new plane to test. Ollie…I don't know what Ollie wants, but it's probably a date. He likes girls a lot, but I think they're gross."

Santa chuckled quietly, apparently oblivious to the fact that Hal and Oliver were hiding their faces with their hands. "Well, Roy, if you continue to be good and stay on the nice list, I'll see what I can do about your action figures. Deal?"

"Deal."

"Good. Thank you for coming to see me, Roy."

"You're welcome, Santa."

"Merry Christmas."

Roy hopped off Santa's lap and one of the elves handed him a candy cane. "Thank you." He waved to Santa one more time before he ran over to Oliver and Hal. "Look what I got!"

"Very nice," Oliver nodded, putting his hand on Roy's back and quickly ushering him away. "How was it visiting Santa for the first time?"

"He's really nice. Just like all the stories say. And I got a candy cane."

"Yum. Ready to go get a tree?"

"Let's go!"

— —

"How much farther is this farm?" Hal asked an hour later, arm resting on the door of the car.

"You're being a real Grinch about all of this, you know that?" Oliver replied.

"You're a mean one," Roy sang while leaning forward to poke Hal with the sharp end he'd gnawed into his candy cane. "Mr. Grinch-"

"Roy, sit back and buckle up," Oliver told him. "What did Santa tell you about staying on the nice list?"

"Oops!"

"You know, you should probably be more worried about the fact that Roy's making a shiv out of of his candy cane," Hal said.

"Do you want a piece?"

The pointed end of the candy cane appeared in the corner of Hal's eye. "After you've slobbered all over it? No, thanks."

Oliver smiled as he turned up the radio, which was tuned to a station playing Christmas songs. "We'll be there soon. And you'd better stop complaining because when we get there it's time for the manual labor."

"Ugh! Why can't we just go buy a Christmas tree at a lot like everyone else? Don't you have some fancy, rich person lot with like…super green, organic Christmas trees?"

"I'll push you out while the car's moving."

"Now who's going to be on the naughty list?"

"Cutting down your own tree is more fun. And we're all about having fun this Christmas, right Roy?"

"Yup!" Roy added. He ate the last bit of his candy cane, then looked at his hands, which were now covered in white and red residual candy. For a few seconds, he looked around, then shrugged and started wiping his hands on his jacket.

Oliver saw from the rearview mirror and shook his head. 'Gotta make sure I wash that jacket,' he thought. They turned down a steep drive and he smiled. "We're here!"

"Is this where we're getting the tree?"

"You bet it is."

Roy pressed his face against the window as they drove down the dirt road to the parking lot. "I don't see any Christmas trees."

"They're gonna make us hike to get it," Hal told him. "Like we're living in the prairie days."

"Keep complaining and you're dragging it back to the car, Jordan," Oliver warned his friend as he parked.

"Fine by me."

Oliver looked at Hal, then rolled his eyes when he realized the other man had slipped his ring onto his hand. "Come on, Roy," he said as he got out. "Let's go cut down a tree."

"Let's go!" Roy whooped as he jumped out of the car.

"Look out for cars- god damn it!"

"Relax, Ollie," Hal smiled, shoving his hands in the pockets of his jacket. "He's fine."

"He ran across the parking lot without even looking!"

"And he made it through without getting hit. Kid's fine. Relax."

"Ollie! Hal!" Roy shouted from the other side of the parking lot. "Let's go!" He turned back to the shack where an older woman was leaning on a counter, watching him. Eager to get a tree, Roy ran right up to the shack. "Hi. We're here for a tree."

"And are your parents with you?" the woman asked kindly. In response, Roy simply turned to point back at Oliver and Hal walking toward them. "Ah… I see." She smiled widely as the two men reached them. "Welcome, gentlemen. This young man says you're here for a tree?"

"Absolutely," Oliver said.

"Is this your first time?"

"First ever," Roy added.

"Exciting. Well, you pay the fee here, then we give you a sled and a saw, then you go out into the field and pick any tree you want."

"Can it be a big one?"

"The biggest one you can find."

Roy's eyes lit up and he started pulling on Oliver's arm. "You hear heard her, Ollie. Let's go!"

"Hal, take Roy to get the sled before he explodes," Oliver said. "I'll meet you guys over there."

"My grandson Ethan is just behind the building," the woman told Hal. "He can give you everything you need."

Hal laughed as Roy dragged him to the other side of the shed. A teenager was stacking plastic sleds behind the shack. He smiled at the two as they approached. "Thought I heard voices," he said. "You guys here to cut a tree?"

"A really big one," Roy nodded, almost solemnly.

"Well, if you're going to cut a big one, you'll need a good sled." Ethan grabbed the string of a nearby sled and handed it to Roy. "There you go." Then he grabbed the saw, which he handed to Hal. "The trails will take you back to the fields. All trees marked with a blue ribbon are fair game. Bring the tree back and we'll help you tie it to the roof."

"Sounds like a deal," Hal nodded. "You ready, kid?"

"Let's go!" Roy started walking toward the trail, but Hal put a hand on his shoulder to stop him.

"Wait for Oliver." He almost laughed at the dramatic sigh from the boy.

A mere two minutes later, Oliver joined them and without another word, Roy took off running down the trail, sneakers crunching on the hard snow. Oliver shook his head as he watched the boy dragging the sled behind him. "Better not fall," he muttered.

"Chill, Ollie," Hal said, rolling his eyes. "And you say I'm the Grinch."

'He says that, but he's not the one who'll have to fight Roy put a damn band-aid on. Kid seems to think basic first aid is an option.' Despite his worries about Roy's safety, a much larger part of his brain was pleased to see Roy so happy. It was obvious by his energy the boy was distracted by their activities. 'Good. I don't want him to be upset.'

After a few minutes, Roy doubled-back to the two men and stopped in front of Hal. "Can I carry the saw?" he asked.

"Sure thing," Hal said before Oliver could object and handed the saw to the Roy, who bounded back down the trail without a second thought.

"Really, Jordan?" Oliver asked.

"What? The kid shoots deadly projectiles for fun. I think he can handle a saw."

Soon they entered the fields filled with green trees, resulting in Oliver losing sight of him. Roy ran from tree to tree, examining them critically before eventually moving on. After a while, he ruled out every tree in the field, then led Oliver and Hal down a trail to the next one. He repeated the pattern, looking critically at each tree, before shaking his head and moving on. Close to an hour later, they were entering the last field, and the two adults were starting to lose their patience.

"Hey, Roy!" Oliver called, trying to sound upbeat. "Do you think we're close to picking one?!"

"Maybe!" Roy replied evasively as he stopped to examine yet another tree.

"What is he even looking for?" Hal asked. "They're all trees. With the ornaments on, they'll all look the same and in a month, they'd all be dying at the edge of your lawn."

"Give him a few more minutes. If he doesn't pick on in the next ten minutes, I'll try to hurry it up."

Roy stopped at another tree, eyeing it critically. He walked around it in a circle, then grinned. "Found one!" he called.

'Thank God,' Oliver thought as he and Hal hurried over to where Roy was standing.

"What'd you guys think?"

"It's big and…green?" Hal replied. "Uh…great tree?"

"Good eye, kiddo," Oliver said, flicking the top of Roy's hat. "Let me see the saw-"

"But I want to cut it!" Roy protested, holding the saw back from Oliver's grasp. He pouted a little. "I've never done it before."

"You can cut it, but let me get you started."

"…Fine." Roy handed the saw over, then Oliver laid down in the snow. He angled himself just right to start sawing. Once he got it a good half an inch into the trunk, he stood.

"Ok, Roy. Have at it." Oliver stepped back as Roy got down on his side and started sawing the tree. "If you get tired, let us know and we can take over." When he didn't get a response, Oliver nudged some lower branches with his foot. "Ok?"

"I won't get tired! I can handle it!"

Hal huffed and shoved his hands into the pockets of his jacket again. "I can't feel my fingers," he muttered. "It's so cold."

"You fly around in space," Oliver muttered back, trying to ignore the tingling in his own fingers and toes. "Pretty sure it's colder up there."

"The ring keeps me warm."

"Then suck it up. We're almost done anyways. All he has to do is cut the tree down, then drag it back to the car." That was a sentiment that eventually dragged on and on for Oliver because it took Roy a while to cut down the tree. He moved from foot to foot, trying to keep himself warm. "Hey, Roy…how's it going down there?"

"Almost… Done!" Roy grunted, still sawing away.

"You know it might be faster if Hal or I take over for a while-"

"No! I can do it!"

"You've already done most of it," Hal added, a hint of hope in his voice. "I mean, we'd just be finishing it off-"

"I'm almost done! I swear!"

Hal and Oliver shook their heads, then went back to trying to keep themselves warm. Eventually, far too long for the cold men, the tree fell with Roy's shout of victory. Relief flooded them, but it was short-lived when they realized Roy was still determined to do everything by himself. He hauled the tree onto the sled, then grabbed the string and started pulling it back toward the car. And if they thought the trek down to the field was long, it was nothing compared making the walk back when Oliver and Hal couldn't feel their toes. It didn't help they had to go the slow pace of a 9-year-old dragging a seven-foot tree behind him. There was the additional problem of having to stop every few minutes so Roy could put the tree back on the sled as it began to slip. It took forever, but Oliver couldn't help but feel happy at the look of pride on Roy's face when they made it back to the shack.

"Wow!" Ethan gasped. "Did you cut that one yourself?"

"Sure did," Roy beamed, hands on his hips.

"Great job. We have some free hot cocoa and cookies for a job well done. Why don't you grab some while I help get this tree tied to your car?"

"Sure!"

"Why didn't he offer us hot chocolate and cookies?" Hal muttered as he and Oliver picked up the tree.

"You're never satisfied, are you?" Oliver replied.

By the time Roy got his free cup of hot chocolate and snowflake shaped sugar cookies, the tree was on top of the car. However, it seemed like they were having a hard time securing it.

"You're tying it wrong," Oliver complained, both he and Hal standing on the other side of the car, obscuring them from view. "Here, let me do it-"

"You're as bad as Roy, you know that?" Hal replied irritably. "Now I know where he gets it from."

"Tie it like that and the damn thing will fall-"

"It's fine, Oliver."

"Didn't they teach you how to tie knots in the Air Force?"

"Yeah, day one was flying fighter jets; day two was knots."

Ethan, who was standing on the other side of the car with Roy, looked down at the boy. "Are they always like this?" he asked quietly.

"Mhm," Roy nodded as he took a sip of his hot chocolate.

The teen gave him a knowing look, then went back to tying his side of the tree. He had it secured before Hal and Oliver had finished with their side, so he went around to help them. When it was done, he shook their hands and gave Roy a high-five before he left.

"Ready to go, kid?" Oliver asked.

"Yup!" Roy said, getting into the car. He put his window down so he could stick his head out and keep an eye on the tree, but Oliver put it back up. "Hey!"

"It's December, Roy. You can't have the window down."

"But I want to keep an eye on the tree."

"It's not going anywhere," Hal reassured him. "And if it does, we'll know, trust me."

"And we'll know who to blame too," Oliver muttered under his breath.

Roy giggled, then went back to watching the tree, nose pressed against the glass.

— —

Getting the tree into the house was almost as much of a task as tying it to the roof of the car. Hal and Oliver managed to get it off the car without a hassle, but that was it.

"Why do I have to carry the top end?" Hal complained, grabbing the top of the tree with both hands.

"It's my house," Oliver replied, hefting the trunk up. "You don't even know where we're putting it!"

"I'll help!" Roy interjected. He ran to the middle and lifted the tree up as the two adults let the tree sit on their respective shoulders. This left Roy with only the ability to touch the branches as they carried it into the house. They set it up in the tree stand Oliver had set up before he and Roy left that morning.

"Ok, Hal, hold it in place. Roy, tell us when it's straight."

Roy stepped back. "Uh…move to the left."

"My left, or your left?" Hal asked.

"My left. Ok, now a little to the right- no, too much! Just like…a little. Good! It's perfect!" Roy practically bounced up and down on his heels as Oliver secure the tree. "Can we decorate it now?!"

"Sorry, kiddo," Oliver said as he stood. "But we have to wait for the branches to settle."

"For how long?"

"Probably until tomorrow."

"Awww…" Roy crossed his arms and ducked his head.

"Don't be like that." Oliver ruffled his hair, but Roy just pouted. "It's one day, you'll survive. I'll go get dinner started and Hal probably has to get home-"

"No! Hal can't go! We haven't decorated the tree yet."

"Roy-"

"Please, Hal!" Roy ran over to Hal and put his hands together in a pleading gesture. "Please?"

Hal sighed and rubbed his face. "Fine, fine," he said. "I'll stay." He already had a room with some clothes at Oliver's anyways.

"Yes! You can help us make the paper chain."

"The…paper chain?"

"Yeah, we have to have a paper chain."

"Roy," Oliver said gently, putting a hand on the boy's head. "We'd need a really big chain for a tree this size-"

"But… Brave Bow and I always had a paper chain…" Roy looked up at his guardian, bottom lip trembling and green eyes wide.

"Of course we can make a paper chain!" Hal interjected quickly. "Why don't you go get all the stuff and we can work on it while Oliver cooks dinner?" Roy ran out of the room, excitedly.

"Hal," Oliver said once he was sure the man was gone. "You're going to be working on that thing for hours."

"It's fine. Put on some Christmas carols and Roy and I will have it done in no time."

So, Hal and Roy worked on the paper chain with red and green construction paper while Oliver cooked dinner. The three of them also worked on it all through dinner. After dinner, they moved to the living room at Roy's request so they could continue working on it while watching Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. All-in-all, the chain ended up being so long, it snaked across the floor and needed to be spread out in rows like a maze. It took so long that Roy eventually fell asleep, leaving Oliver and Hal to finish the last couple of feet.

"I'm sorry," Oliver said quietly, trying not to disturb Roy, whose head was in his lap as he glued the last piece onto the paper chain.

"For what?" Hal asked as he finished off his end as well. "That I've sent the last…5 hours making a paper garland for your tree, or the fact that I'm now a foot stand?" He gestured to the fact that Roy's feet were stretched across his legs.

"Both, I guess."

"Oh, don't worry. I'm happy to do it for Roy. I want him to have a good Christmas and you're not the worst company for a weekend."

"Thanks."

"Besides, I haven't really done this stuff since…since before I enlisted I think. It was nice."

"I appreciate it. We can probably leave this here for the night. I should get him up to bed."

"Good idea. He'll need plenty of energy to decorate tomorrow."

"I was thinking we could put up some Christmas lights outside. My dad used to do that every year."

"I'm sure Roy would love that."

Oliver smiled and carefully stopped the sleeping bundle into his arms. The movement woke Roy, who stirred blearily. "Huh?" he asked, looking around in confusion. "Did we finish?"

"Yeah, we finished, kid. Time for bed. Say good-night to Ha.l"

"Oh… Ok…" Roy settled against Oliver's chest with a yawn. "G'night Hal…"

"Night, Roy," Hal smiled, ruffling his hair affectionately.

"Did you have a good day?" Oliver asked as he carried Roy to his bedroom.

"Mhm… Wish Brave Bow was here but…love you an' Hal…" Roy yawned again, words mumbling together as he fell back to sleep.

"I'm glad you had fun, buddy." When they got to his room, Oliver laid Roy on the bed and covered him up, then kissed his forehead gently. "We have lots more Christmas fun ahead of us tomorrow." And as exhausting as it was, Oliver would put up with a whole month of Christmas festivities if it made Roy smile.


End file.
